A large glowing spiral seen across the night sky on Monday evening left stargazers and residents in the UK and Europe baffled—until experts revealed its cosmic origin.
The eye-catching formation, described by observers as a "swirling galaxy" or a “giant Catherine wheel”, was in fact caused by a SpaceX Falcon 9 rocket launch from Florida, according to the UK Met Office and astronomers.
The Falcon 9 rocket lifted off around 13:50 local time (17:50 GMT) on a classified mission for the United States government’s National Reconnaissance Office. Although the launch occurred thousands of miles away, its impact was briefly visible from Earth in spectacular fashion.
The phenomenon occurred during the second stage of the rocket’s journey. After separating from the main booster, which returns to Earth for reuse, the second stage carried a payload into orbit. Once the mission objective was completed, the upper stage vented leftover fuel into space. At high altitude, this fuel freezes instantly and spreads out in a spiral pattern, illuminated by sunlight and made visible from the ground.
According to the Met Office, the spiral effect is created by the spinning motion of the rocket as it falls back toward Earth, distributing frozen fuel in a circular motion that reflects light in the darkened sky.
A Rare and Surreal Sight
The spiral was spotted above parts of the UK, including Wales and Suffolk, at around 8:00pm GMT. Astronomer Allan Trow, who observed the spiral over Bannau Brycheiniog National Park in Wales, confirmed he had seen a similar event once before but stressed that such occurrences are rare.
While SpaceX and the Kennedy Space Center have confirmed the launch was a classified mission for the US National Reconnaissance Office, the unintended sky show it produced has sparked awe and curiosity around the world.
Despite the mystery and brief confusion, scientists were quick to identify the phenomenon as a byproduct of modern space exploration—a beautiful, if rare, reminder of human activity far above our heads.
As astronomers confirm, while such spirals are rare, they may become more common as private space companies like SpaceX conduct more frequent orbital missions.
The eye-catching formation, described by observers as a "swirling galaxy" or a “giant Catherine wheel”, was in fact caused by a SpaceX Falcon 9 rocket launch from Florida, according to the UK Met Office and astronomers.
The Falcon 9 rocket lifted off around 13:50 local time (17:50 GMT) on a classified mission for the United States government’s National Reconnaissance Office. Although the launch occurred thousands of miles away, its impact was briefly visible from Earth in spectacular fashion.
Frozen Fuel Creates Sky Spiral
The phenomenon occurred during the second stage of the rocket’s journey. After separating from the main booster, which returns to Earth for reuse, the second stage carried a payload into orbit. Once the mission objective was completed, the upper stage vented leftover fuel into space. At high altitude, this fuel freezes instantly and spreads out in a spiral pattern, illuminated by sunlight and made visible from the ground.
According to the Met Office, the spiral effect is created by the spinning motion of the rocket as it falls back toward Earth, distributing frozen fuel in a circular motion that reflects light in the darkened sky.
A Rare and Surreal Sight
The spiral was spotted above parts of the UK, including Wales and Suffolk, at around 8:00pm GMT. Astronomer Allan Trow, who observed the spiral over Bannau Brycheiniog National Park in Wales, confirmed he had seen a similar event once before but stressed that such occurrences are rare.
Classified Mission, Public Spectacle
While SpaceX and the Kennedy Space Center have confirmed the launch was a classified mission for the US National Reconnaissance Office, the unintended sky show it produced has sparked awe and curiosity around the world.
Despite the mystery and brief confusion, scientists were quick to identify the phenomenon as a byproduct of modern space exploration—a beautiful, if rare, reminder of human activity far above our heads.
As astronomers confirm, while such spirals are rare, they may become more common as private space companies like SpaceX conduct more frequent orbital missions.
